Mmmmmmoe's Cookin' Spicy Turkey Soup with Peppered Potato Dumplings

        Welcome to Mmmmmmoe's Cookin', a blog where I'll be posting recipes for whatever I'm cooking up and links to whatever you made need, aside from you meats and produce, to make these meals at home. Just click on the picture, it's that easy.

     Today's recipe is one of my favorite uses for that leftover holiday turkey carcass that doubles as a perfect chicken soup recipe.


What you'll need-

Tools-



   





Spices-

                                 

Sea salt
Whole Peppercorns
Curry
Cumin
Tumeric
Italian Blend
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Sriracha


Meat & Produce-

1 leftover Turkey Carcass(or 1 whole chicken)
1 lb. carrots(peeled & cut into 1 in. chunks)
6 stalks celery(cut into 1/2 in. pieces)
2 cups onion(pureed)
4 cloves of garlic(minced)
2 Jalapeno peppers(1 pureed/1 sliced into wheels)
1 large sweet potato(peeled and cut into 1 in. chunks)


Preparation-

     Start by putting the bird into your stock pot and fill it with fresh, cold water(totally covering the bird), add some sea salt(start with 1/4 cup, you can add more to taste, at the end...), and a tablespoon of whole peppercorns(I prefer the medley). Bring this all to a boil, reduce the heat and let simmer for a couple of hours, till the meat is falling off of the bones...

      Next, grab your strainer and 8 cup measuring cup. Carefully pour all of the stock through the strainer, remove all of the meat, bones, and peppercorns, from the stock pot, set aside. Clean out the pot and put 20 cups of the strained broth back in.

     Now, you want to turn the heat back up and add your spices and veggies. First, add your carrots, sweet potato, and celery. Next, your spices...1tblsp. Curry, 1 tblsp. tumeric, 1/2 tblsp. Cumin, and 1 tblsp. Italian blend(basil, thyme, oregano, & a little rosemary if you use fresh...). Finally add your pureed onion, garlic, and jalapeno. Bring it all up to a boil...

Now for my favorite part, the dumplings!

     If you're like me, there are always plenty of holiday leftovers. Most of them get eaten up pretty quick as sandwiches...But, the mashed potatoes just sit there. They're just not that popular the next day, or the day after that. I hate seeing food go to waste. So, I turn them into the most ridiculicious potato dumplings. Here's how...

     For every cup of mashed potatoes you have, add 1 egg, and 1 cup of flour, mix into a dough and season as you like.
   
     For tonight's recipe, I mixed 2 cups of mashed potatoes(which were already seasoned with salt and pepper), 2 eggs, 2 cups of flour, 1 tblsp crushed red pepper flakes and 3/4 tblsp minced garlic together, into dough, and then dropped it, in tablespoon sized balls, into the boiling soup.

Now, you turn it down to simmer, put the lid on the pot, and set your timer for 10 minutes.

     While the dumplings are cooking, it's time to start dealing with the meat, my least favorite part. I'll be honest, turkeys have a TON of bones and picking through for them is not fun. Not only is it gross, it's time consuming...But, I wouldn't be posting this recipe if it wasn't worth it....

    When the timer goes off, uncover the pot and allow to keep simmering while you finish getting the meat prepared. I leave turkey in the largest chunks possible, as it tends to fall apart quickly. Add the meat to the pot, give it a gentle stir or two and grab a bowl...

So simple, yet, so delicious...

This is a very versatile recipe, that can be altered in many ways. If you like it spicier, add more jalapenos, or some crushed red pepper, or do what I do and add a healthy squeeze of Sriracha to the bowl when serving...

You can also add a wide range of vegetables like corn, hominy, green beans, spinach, large butter beans, canned diced tomatoes...whatever you like!